Yesterday, the Seminole County Commission decided to table its discussion of rebranding the county as "Orlando North." The county has been considering adopting the slogan and marketing materials in an effort to draw in more of the tourist dollars that flow so freely in the Orlando area. According to
a story in the Orlando Sentinel, the Seminole County Convention and Visitors Bureau commissioned a study that revealed that tourists don't think of Seminole County as a real place – rather, they think of it as the area "north of Orlando." Kind of like that 1976 Saul Sternberg illustration for the
New Yorker that offered a view of the world from the perspective of a New Yorker:
They also argued that when people are searching for things to do when they visit Orlando, they aren't searching for "Seminole County." They're only looking for things labeled "Orlando." The visitors bureau website is already full of prompts for people to visit "Orlando's natural theme parks" and "Orlando's natural oasis." So, Orlando North, then.
Some residents and businesses were, understandably, distraught that the county was considering hitching a ride on Orlando's coattails rather than trying to make a name for itself. The
Orlando Business Journal pointed out that one unhappy businessman suggested that the shorthand for Orlando North could be extremely unfortunate: O-No.
On Tuesday, June 10, the County Commission made the wise decision to sit on the branding change for the time being. From yesterday's
Sentinel: "County Commission Chairwoman Brenda Carey said she would like to see other options besides 'Orlando North' before approving it."
